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Overall great guitar that will last forever

I purchased a LP Studio mainly because of its attractive price - I didn't, at the time, think I was good enough to warrant spending over £1000 on a guitar, however I still wanted the iconic Gibson tone and sound.

After my purchase 5 years ago the guitar has not let me down once and, to be honest, I haven't really felt the need to upgrade to a more expensive version (Standard, Custom etc.).

I play in a covers band at the moment as a past time - I use this guitar to play the cleaner sounds of 'Wonderwall' and 'let it be' to the more gritty 'All day and all of the night' and 'mustang sally'. It has been commented on by a range of musicians on how diverse the sound of this guitar is - it suits well most styles and types of music. Obviously a good Amp contributes to this - I use a Marshall, which compliments the tone superbly.

Other than the amazing sound produced by this guitar, the other great feature is the playing. It allows for smooth movement up and down the fretboard. The weight too just makes you feel its presence around your neck.

Overall amazing guitar that you will never want to put down suiting a range of different styles and genres. Honestly, you will NOT be disappointed.

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Great for the price, a classic guitar with a iconic sound and look

Anyone who plays guitar or has a knowledge of rock music or instruments will recognise the classic profile of the Gibson Les Paul, one of the most popular (and copied!) guitars of all time. This Gibson Les Paul Studio model offers guitarists the chance to own a piece of rock history, whilst avoiding the sometimes prohibitive cost of the more higher end models.

The studio is very similar to the standard model, with the differences being mainly cosmetic. For example, this model features lower quality hardware and no binding, meaning the guitar looks less 'flash'. However, the recognisable thick, Gibson tone is there, and with a good amplifier, the sound difference between the studio and the much more expensive standad model is negligible.

This guitar can be found with ease for less than a grand, and even under 900 pounds if you are willing to shop around. With the quality sound and look associated with a Gibson guitar, this is nothing short of a bargain.

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What a sweet, sweet sound this guitar has.

When I set out to buy a guitar for my 17th birthday, I had no idea how lucky I was going to get. As soon as I lay eyes on it in the shop I was in love. Visually, all Les Paul's are very attractive, and the Studio comes with a significantly lower price tag, which is very nice!Mine is a nice cherry red, and while the finish may not be as amazing as the LP Custom models, as soon as you plug it in, you really won't care about the paint job. In short - it sounds amazing. It possesses this really rich, full tone, with a lovely fat low end and a singing high end. With a touch of distortion added to it this guitar sounds formidable, even when you've got it pretty quiet, it somehow sounds loud - not in terms of volume, just the timbre of the thing! Put the pickup selector switch to treble, and you can create singing melodies with plenty of harmonics, switch to rhythm and rock out those power chords; this guitar really does sound nice whatever you play on it.I got mine for £750 from a local guitar shop and they threw in a case and a lead for free. I would always recommend trying a guitar before you buy it, so going into a shop is pretty essential, especially if you're going to shell out several hundred pounds!I absolutely love this guitar, and it's served me very, very well.

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Buy it, take care of it and it will eventually pay YOU back as they only go up in price

OK, every Gibson, no matter which model, except signature models, use the same pick ups for all their guitars 490's and 498 humbuckers, so technically a Gibson "Custom" will sound as good as a "Studio", all except for one thing-THE PRICE. A Custom costs around 1900.00 quid, and a Studio, well minus 1000.00 anyway.

A Gibson "Studio" in wine red with gold hardware, is a very good looking guitar, and when amped up, it sounds awesome, with the sustain lasting longer than Fenders due to their glued set necks as opposed to screwed in ones, you can pluck a string, go for a walk come back, have lunch, go back to it and it will still be humming, for those wondering what all the fuss is about, it means the guitar can pick the slightest vibration up and things like fingerboard tapping are made easier.

I had one in an Alpine White Gibson flight case, as is standard when purchasing a Gibson, and these cases don't come cheap, some weighing in at 120 pounds!!! Already you have made a saving without even knowing it, I lie awake at nights kicking myself for getting rid of something so extraordinary, although its a bottom to mid range priced guitar, forking out 800 quid is more than easy to do when buying one, but do shop around.

Shopping around- when you are considering the purchase of a Studio, remember these rules of thumb, especially when buying off eBay, unless you live close enough to go and collect the guitar, you will never know what kind of condition the frets are in, even if its only a year or so old, the neck may be dogged and it may even have had a broken neck at one point, the pots may sound scratchy.Talking of broken necks, it is always beneficial to keep the guitar in the flightcase when its not in use as the breakage of a Gibson Studio's neck is a fairly common occurrence. For those who think the pride of place for their guitar is on a stand behind a door, think again!, keep it locked up.

The case comes with a number locking device, don't use this as they do tend to get stuck after a short while and you don't want to end up opening your prized guitar with a nail bar, as well as keeping it in the case that it comes with, keep on top of polishing it after every session, if you're a bedroom rock star or a weekend entertainer, keeping the guitar looking good is made a lot easier by doing so with the 25 pound cleaning kit that also comes with it.

Serial numbers among Gibson's can be checked and found on the Gibson website, but for ease here's how the most recent system works, the 1st and 5th numbers on the serial number behind the neck and between the tuning pegs will tell you what year that guitar was made ie; 01238123 means the guitar was built and assembled in '08, this is not the case for older ones as the company has tried various methods.

Buying the guitar from a reputable dealer is always good practice, the shop usually set up all Gibson's and any trouble, including breakages, can be dealt with often in the shop, last I checked, a clean snap will set you back a big note (100pnds), if by now you might be wondering what the hell I'm rattling on about with the broken neck syndrome, I have seen it happen, grown men have sat with tear filled eyes as if a family pet has just died, it's nice to look at sure, if you want one to look at, take a photo.

Good luck in finding your new(ish) Gibson L.P Studio

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"Doesn't have the same image"

The Les Paul. Forever known as one of the greatest guitar brands. The classic days of Jimmy Page and his electric solos on his customised Les Paul which was actually a gold top re-finished in a sun burst has been braught to the guitarist with a budget. Although this guitar is good, it is still alot more expensive than an Epiphone and doesn't merit the larger price tag. Having played a Standard, a Studio, an SG and an Epiphone I wouldn't even consider buying any other than the Standard, but if you are on a budget then really an Epiphone would do the trick if you still want a good playable guitar. The only guitar that comes close to a Standard would be the SG but that just doesn't look as good. So for looks I would give the Studio 8/10, for playing ability i would give it 7/10 and for image i would give it 6/10. Taking these things into consideration the Studio isn't great value for money and is really a bit cheap, not as good value for money as the Epiphone which isn't really any worse to play than the Studio and Gibson are clearly just charging extra for the brand name! It's not a bad guitar but I wouldn't recommend buying it, either be cheap and go for the Epiphone or Save up a little bit harder and go for the grand daddy Standard!!!

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At around £700 you may not think that this guitar is an actual Gibson. Let me reassure you, it is. I myself own a Gibson Les Paul Studio in Emerald Green and Gold and this guitar is every bit as good as the Les Paul Standard (£999). The finish, pickups body and neck are exactly the same as the Standard. The reason you save over £200 when purchasing the Studio over the Standard is the fact that Studio has no bindng from the body to the neck, ( the plastic trim running arond the body and neck of the guitar). The electrics are amazing and for for £700 you get the most beautiful shimmering finish. When I put it through my Carlsbro GLX 100 Watt amp the variety of tones, clean, crunch and distortion sounds are almost endless. Depending on where you buy the guitar, it could come with no case at all, or an unbelievable Gibson hard case, velvet lined with gold clips and combination lock to protect your instrument. I have now had the guitar a while, it has done three major gigs and the sound just gets better and better. For me personally Gibson is the only guitar and with such users as "Slash" a Gibson ia a must have for a serious guitarist.

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In the seventies, bedroom guitar gods usually went one way or the another. Those who wanted to be Eric "Slowhand" Clapton usually bought a guitar in the style of a Fender Stratocaster and practiced 'Layla' and solos that lasted the best part of a fortnight. However, those who were slightly more intrested in Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and his satatnic antics were more inclined to play a Gibson Les Paul-esque axe and occasionally make hurrendous noises attempt Page's party trick of playing guitar with a violin bow. The reason that most bought guitars in the style of their heroes as opposed to the same models was the huge prices charged for such hand crafted instruments. Therefore, a roaring trade was done in guitars styled, shaped and, to a lesser extent, sounding like their pricier counterparts, but lacking the extra sparkle that made the other guitars so great. Fender used the 'Squier' label for cheaper Strat models, whilst Gibson used the Epiphone imprint for more affordable Les Paul models. In the early eighties, Gibson decided to bridge the gap between the Epiphone Les Paul and it's Gibson equivalent by introducing a cheaper, more mass produced Les Paul on the Gibson imprint. The end result was the Gibson Les Paul Studio. Purists were upset that the mystique and relative unattainability of the Gibson had been tarnished somewhat, but many a bedroom axeman was excitied. The guitars were still expensive compared to Epiphone models, but much more within range than their legendary predecessors. And what awaited the less financially astute Gibson enthusiast? Well, starting with first impressions, the Studio maintained the classic Les Paul design, however with more curved edges and some models lost the famous Gibson fret markers, replaced with the more standard tiny circles. The overall effect, visually, successfully marries the Les Paul's classic design with the clear indication that the playe r hasn't joined the big leagues yet. In fact, many Epiphone Les Pauls look more like the classic guitars than the Studio, but the difference is one features the word 'Gibson', and the other doesn't. The sound, the most important thing obviously, is textbook Les Paul, but lacking a little of the meatiness and clarity that propelled its daddy to iconic status. Gibson are famous for producing the finest pure rock sounds with 6 strings, with both the Les Paul and the SG long being the metal or heavy blues axe of choice, and the Studio follows the fine tradition, especially when combined with a Marshall amp in rock's most famous instrument/amp marriage. Whether in a bedroom, or at a club, the Studio holds up well and allows gigging musicians with a bit of cash a chance to really wig-out in true Gibson style, safe in the knowledge that the sound will be as chunky as they could wish for. Soloing is where the difference between the Studio and it's expensive borthers is most noticable, with the Studio lacking some of the wild wail that Jimmy Page could employ so well. However, thats not to the say the Studio leaves a screeching mess, it's perfectly fine for stretching the fingers over the fretboard, but lacks a certain punch. A good studio can be picked up nowadays for between £700 to £900, placing it a good £100-£200 or so above top end Epiphones, but short of breaking the four figure barrier which is needed for one of the higher end or signature models. For all the alarm purists felt at Gibson shedding some of the Les Paul's allure by bringing it to a wider market place and trading off some of the clarity and looks that made it a star, the Studio holds up as a fine example of a manufacturer shedding any aloof attitude about its guitars, and hoping to bring them a little closer to the amateur enthusiast. Turn it on, crank it up..... and rock.

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Product Details

The Les Paul Studio enhances the solid, proven design of the worlds most famous guitar with a wide choice of finishes, and a sleek, no-frills look. The Les Paul Studio is the favorite of guitarists who demand traditional Les Paul performance with a modern attitude